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I'm not much of a wheat ale kind of guy, which I suppose is a crime in some circles. I mean, I get the point behind it, and I can respect it. It just isn't my number one choice of beer. That goes for Maui Brewing -- the brewery behind one of my favorites, the CoCoNut Porter -- and their Mana Wheat too.

This is obviously a beer squarely aimed at the summer crowds, what with the pineapple juice apparently used front and center during brewing. I say "apparently" as I picked up very little pineapple from my can. I'm not sure if it was part of a bum batch or not, but as opposed to the rest of the internets, this just seemed like a pretty straightforward wheat beer to me.

It pours a pale orange with a very nice fluffy head and great lacing. A sniff reveals just a bit of citrus and pineapple modestly and bashfully hiding behind the wheat. When it hits the tongue it's definitely crisp and refreshing, but I can only pick up hints of the fruits. The carbonation is also rather heavy, though I suppose that's not really a bad thing in something that aims to refresh.

In that sense this isn't a bad beer at all, it just isn't for me. Pick up a can if you're a wheat fan, just don't expect to get your mind blown.